Tips for preparing comments for the Hearing Examiner
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BACKGROUND: On May 12, 2022, the County Community Development Department will hold a hearing to consider whether to grant a Conditional Use Permit application CUP-2021-012 to allow operation of cryptocurrency mining facility to be run by a group of companies formed by Allrise Capital, Merkle Standard, and Bitmain. The Community Development Department has retained a 3rd-Party Hearing Examiner to rule on the issue. The Public is allowed to comment by letter and by Zoom Meeting to the Hearing Examiner about whether he should grant, deny, or delay the Conditional Use Permit. A Conditional Use Permit is required for operation because the site of the former PNC Mill is currently zoned as Residential.
Here are some thoughts on preparing comments in writing or in person for the hearing examiner. First, identify what your specific concerns are and how the facility could impact you or the community. Examples include:
Second, explain why you have these concerns. For example, you may be concerned because other communities have had the problems you are concerned with, because the information in the CUP/SEPA is incomplete, ambiguous, or incorrect, or because you feel Merkle Standard will not answer your questions (or all of the above). Third, be very respectful and leave your emotions at the door. Highly emotional and disrespectful people are hard to take seriously. Stick to the facts you know. In this case, drawing attention to what you don’t know may be a very good strategy. How did Greg Snow issue a Determination of Non-Significance without X & Y. Concerns of noise pollution are very legitimate. Water use is another. Try to quantify your concerns. You either have noisy fans or you are using a ton of water or both, and where does that water go? Which is it? We don’t know because they have yet to be transparent on those issues. It seems to me that they have been designing this crypto mining car while they were driving it. Does the Hearing Examiner have enough information to issue an informed decision? I think not. Conditional use permits typically are approved with conditions that minimize impacts to the community, environment, etc. It is hard to comment with recommended conditions, when you really are not 100% certain what the impacts are going to be. Their actions do not show respect for the law. They have been mining and continue to do so. They do not have a CUP. How are we supposed to trust a company(s) that has total disregard for our land use regulations? Can we trust that they are going to do as they say? Can we trust that they will follow their permit? They have yet to show that they can be trusted. This is kind of an emotional argument, but they have created this monster. All they had to do was follow the rules and put together a professional application. They did neither. Fourth, Strategy may be important. They typically give each person 3 minutes (or so) to give their oral testimony. If you can convince others in the room (virtual or otherwise) to forgo their time and grant it to you, that may be a way to get more time. If not, make sure you have a written copy of your argument that you can submit. At the end of the day, we all have to live in this County together and being nasty is never a good long-term strategy. |
How do I Submit a Comment Letter to the Hearing Examiner?Who do I send my letter to?
Ms. Vicki Koehler, Community Development Department Email: vkoehler@pendoreille.org When is the deadline to submit a comment letter? We recommend submitting your letter not later than 4:00 PM on Thursday, May 5, 2022. Letters submitted after May 5 may still be accepted. How should I label my comment letter? According to the Rules of Procedures provided to the County, paragraph 2.C. All documents, images, illustrations, maps, etc. that a Participant/Witness intends to present and refer to during the hearing must be clearly labeled as follows:
A Note on the Submission Deadline. On April 26, Ms. Koehler at Community Development Department reported to us that "There is not a deadline of May 6th. If we receive any comments, they will be sent to the hearing examiner, and it will be up to him to decide if it is used or not, but it will be part of the file." However, the Rules of Procedures state in paragraph 2.A. All documents, images, illustrations, maps, etc. that a Participant/Witness intends to present and refer to during the hearing must be submitted to the Spokane County Building and Planning Department no later than 4:00 pm, five (5) working days (not including Saturday, Sunday, or holidays) prior to the date of the hearing. Accordingly, we recommend submitting your comment letter not later than 4:00 PM on May 5. How do participate in the Hearing on May 12?Unfortunately, the Community Development Office did not grant the request of many members of the community to allow in-person attendance at Hearing. Concerned citizens will only be allowed to attend and participate by Zoom.
The instructions provided by the Community Development Office are: A public hearing will be held by the County Hearing Examiner at 9:00 am on May 12, 2022, via Zoom to hear this matter followed by a public hearing to hear the associated Conditional Use Permit application. You can attend the Zoom meeting at the following: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/88120381756?pwd=dXR5Nm5QWVlYZ3JLQnBPMzlFQk1OQT09 Meeting ID: 881 2038 1756 Passcode: 312818 Dial by your location +1 253 215 8782 US Meeting ID: 881 2038 1756 |